Rapper 50 Cent to play Dubai music festival

The Grammy Award-winning American rapper and music mogul 50 Cent will headline the next instalment of the Atelier Live Festival at Dubai's Meydan Racecourse on October 19.

According to the event's promoters, the Dubai-based Alchemy Project, 50 Cent is the first of up to six high profile hip-hop and electronic artists coming for the one-day music event. The 37-year-old 50 Cent, real name Curtis James Jackson III, will perform with his band G-UNIT.

The festival comes on the heels of its successful debut in April, where 16,000 fans watched the performances of musicians Leona Lewis, Jay Sean and Taio Cruz, among others.

"I think that the line-up for this festival is even stronger than the previous one, due to the popularity of the artists we have," said Mac Far, the chairman of Alchemy Project.

Far also confirmed the festival will now run up to three times per year, with the next instalment set for New Year's Eve.

Details on the complete line-up, as well as ticketing information, are expected to be released by the end of the month. For more information, visit www.theatelierworld.com.